12 



JOUBNAL OF HOETICULTUEE AND COTTAGE GARDENEE, 



[ July 4, 1872. 



To enable reliable conclusions to be drawn would require an ac- 

 cumulation of data drawn from the careful observation of very 

 many unbiassed workers, whose results had been obtained from 

 experiments conducted with scientific precision from all our 

 flowers and plants. Such an accumulation of recorded facts (if 

 they could be obtained) would prove a source of the greatest in- 

 terest to the philosopher by their tendency to throw some light 

 upon the working of Nature'slaws, and could not but afford most 

 valuable information for the guidance of the practical horticul- 

 turist, and, moreover, by freeing it from all empiricism, place it 

 in its true and legitimate position among the modem sciences. 



Mr. Robert Fexn, of Woodstock, described a series of experi- 

 ments he had carried on during the last thirty years in obtain- 

 ing seedling Potatoes, and in crossing certain varieties. He 

 tried to cross Jackson's Seedling with the old Fluke, but obtained 

 no useful results. On trying the former with a black American 

 kidney, out of 160 Potatoes ninety-nine were of a red colour'. 

 "When proper care and skill were used in crossing, a very small 

 per-centage only reverted to their original wild state — only 

 twenty-five out of 1000 seedlings reverted to their original type. 

 Unless they crossed the old varieties with seedlings they were 

 more likely than not to spoil the breed, but to preserve the shape 

 of the produce it was always better to cross kidney with kidney, 

 and round with round varieties. 



Professor W. T. Dyer read a paper by Mr. J. Glaisher, F.R.S., 

 of the Royal Observatory, Greenwich, "On Some Thermometers 

 for Horticultural Use." He submitted three instruments prepared 

 under his direction, the first provided with a bayonet for deter- 

 mining the temperature 1, 2, and 3 inches above soil ; also, a 

 dry and wet bulb thermometer, the difference between the two 

 showing the amount of moisture, and worthy of particular study 

 diu'ing the sudden alternations of temperature in the spring. 

 These were all cheaper than the ordinary thermometers, and their 

 accuracy guaranteed by Mr. Glaisher to two-thirds of a degree. 



Professor Dyer also read a paper by Mr. J. G. Baker, F.L.S., 

 Assistant Keeper of the Kew Harbarium, "On Draeaana and 

 Cordyline." 



Mr. Forrest read another paper, by Mr. C. Roberts, F.B.C.S. 

 (communicated by Dr. M. T. Masters), " On Sulphozone," a 

 preparation which had been found very effective for the de- 

 struction of mildew and blight found on'Vines, the Hop plant, 

 Roses, fruit and other trees, without injur}' to the produce or 

 the plant. It was also a very good disinfectant and deodoriser, 

 and was useful for medical, veterinary, and sanitary purposes. 



Professor Dyer read a few words witten by Mr. J. Pearson, as 

 an addendum to his pamphlet " On the Origin of Canker in Fruit 

 Trees." Subsequent experiments, and the testimony of com- 

 petent authorities, had amply proved the truth of his conclusion, 

 that the general cause of canker was water, a discovery which 

 had been rendered very useful by the adoption of various contri- 

 vances to keep moisture from young delicate wood. This course 

 had been invariably successful in preventing canker. 



The second day's Congress was held in the luncheon tent at 

 four o'clock. The Earl of Bradford, who had been announced to 

 take the chair, was absent, and Professor Thiselton Dyer pre- 

 sided in his place. 



The first paper was read by Mr. T. Moore, F.L.S., Floral 

 Director of the Royal Horticultural Society, on "The Recent 

 Progress of Practical Horticulture." The paper was an enume- 

 ration of the principal new flowers, with remarks upon their 

 qualities and horticultural rank. It also included criticisms on 

 newly-introduced trees, fruits, and vegetables. The employ- 

 ment of glass, he said, was now necessary to enable the gardener 

 to make something like sure of a crop of fruit [hear, hear], and 

 whatever protection was needed should be ungrudgingly pro- 

 vided. 



Mr. W. Paul, F.R.H.S., read a paper on " Form in the Tree 

 Scenery of our Gardens, Parks, and Pleasure Grounds." He 

 divided trees, for the purposes of the paper, into the follow- 

 ing representative classes : — 1, Irregular ; 2, Round-headed ; 

 3, Laminate ; 4, Columnar ; 5, Weeping. He condemned the 

 planting of trees in an unmeaning jumble, with no guiding prin- 

 ciple in planting, and pointed out in what situations trees of the 

 kinds which he had indicated could be well emplo3'ed. In the 

 course of the paper he said that when planting in the vicinity 

 of a dwelling-house, whether it was a mansion or a cottage, they 

 often found themselves under considerable restraint, because 

 the form of the trees required to be in harmony with the charac- 

 ter of the building. It might not be necessary to consider every 

 order or style of architecture as requiring a different assortment 

 of trees ; it sufficed to divide the whole into Perpendicular, of 

 which the Gothic might be given as an example, and the Hori- 

 zontal, which was fairly exemplifiedby the Italian style. Irregular, 

 round-headed, and weeping trees were in character with either ; 

 but the laminate and round-headed were, to his mind, the most 

 pleasing in connection with the perpendicular, and the columnar 

 and irregular with the horizontal. If the building were low, 

 tall-growing trees should be avoided, and the round-headed, the 

 laminate, and the weeping were especially desirable, because 

 they directed the eye horizontally and downwards. It should 



ever be borne in mind that the presence of lofty trees in prox- 

 imity to a low building had the undesirable influence of still 

 further depressing it. 



Mr. P. Grieve read a paper, entitled "Hints on the Forma- 

 tion and Arrangement of Shrubberies," in which he advocated 

 the planting of fruit trees in pleasure grounds, instead of dis- 

 posing of them in the kitchen garden, where their beauty was 

 spoilt by inharmonious surroundings ; or in the orchard, which 

 was generally in an out-of-the wa}--place. 



The Rev. C. P. Peach read a paper on the subject of the bed- 

 ding-out system, which we give in extenso in another page. 



Mr. J. Croucher read a paper on "The Cultivation of 

 Stapelias." 



The Chair5Lan next read a paper sent hy Mr. G. Westland, 

 " On the Future of our Fruit Crops." The writer began by stat- 

 ing that the taste for fruit and the demand for its supply were 

 notoriously increasing. His object, therefore, was to ask how 

 more could be obtained. Looking back to the orchards of the 

 midland and cider counties, and taking into consideration the 

 sacks, or even cartloads, of fruit which hundreds of trees in- 

 dividually produced, he inquired whether the dwarf system, 

 which had been pursued for the last quarter of a century, though 

 pretty so far as it went, was not a blunder with reference to the 

 supply of the markets and the mouths of the millions ? Fortu- 

 nately, market and commercial growers had not been misled by 

 the pretty deception, but had stuck to the old standard form, 

 guiding, not restricting trees, and they gathered fruit accordingly. 

 No scheme ever led to more disappointment than the pinching 

 and root-pruning systems of cultivation. Such trees made 

 pretty objects in a garden, and they were especially pretty when 

 full of fruit ; but that was so rare an occurrence as only to be re- 

 garded as the exception, and not the rule. Such being the fact, 

 it appeared that the only sure way to increatre the market supply 

 was to go back to the good old plan of planting orchards, not by 

 scores or hundreds of trees, but by scores or hundreds of acres. 

 Of the propriety of planting hardy fruits to a very large extent 

 there could be no question, so long as the varieties had the 

 qualities of abundant bearing and flavour, and if necessary, suit- 

 ability for kitchen use. Plant no inferior fruits, nor any that 

 were not known to be suitable to the locality, unless an odd one 

 for the sake of trial. Again, in unfavourable localities for fruit- 

 growing, there were certain spots which might be planted with 

 a fair chance of success. Shelter, of course, was a great point, 

 but the shelter of walls was not so good as the shelter of a belt 

 of evergreen trees. Spring frosts were the greatest drawbacks 

 in fruit-growing, and therefore plants when frozen should not 

 be exposed to the morning sun. The writer objected to pot cul- 

 ture as only suitable for amateurs ; growing plants in pots would 

 never be a source of supply of fruit. He also condemned garden 

 walls, as a crop once in five years was the full average of wall 

 trees, and therefore the return was not worth the trouble and 

 expense of management. 



Mr. W. B. Renble read a paper "On the Use of Glass and 

 Other Protective Materials in Horticulture." In cold countries, 

 he said, experience had proved that modern notions of garden- 

 ing could not succeed without the help of glass. During the last 

 two seasons especially, the frost and snow had destroyed great 

 quantities of Peaches and Nectarines, and since the heavy duty 

 on glass had been repealed there was no reason why it should 

 not be extensively used for horticultural purposes. The immense 

 value of glass had only been discovered within the last few 

 years, and instances were quoted by Mr. Rendle to show its 

 practicability for the protection of fruit as well as flowers. 



Mr. Shirley Hibberd also sent the f ollowing paper on 



Alpine Plants. — The increasing taste for the cultivation of 

 Alpine plants will, it is hoped, justify the presentation to this 

 Congress of a few remarks on their origin, their characteristics, 

 and their cultivation. Current books on the subject contain but 

 little useful information of a general kind, however valuable 

 they may be to the collector as indicating species and varieties 

 that are especially worthy of his attention. As I approve most 

 heartily of the restrictions placed upon contributors as to the 

 time allowed for the reading of these papers, I shaU beg of those 

 who favour me with a hearing that I may here conclude my 

 preface, and make the briefest possible statement of the facts and 

 opinions it appears necessary to adduce in elucidation of the 

 three divisions of the subject selected for present consideration. 



As to the first section of our theme, it appears to be necessary 

 first to agree that we do not seek for the plants or for the explan- 

 ation of their origin on the Alps alone. When we speak of 

 Alpine plants, we have in view the vegetable products of moun- 

 tains without regard to the especial flora of any particular peak 

 or range. The Alpine garden of the British horticulturist may 

 be as consistently furnished with gatherings from the Carpa- 

 thians, the Pyrenees, the Rocky Mountains,- and the Scottish 

 Highlands, as from the Alps alone. But when we consider our 

 collections collectively we find that they possess man}* features 

 and characters in common, and perhaps the most universal and 

 constant of their peculiarities is their capability of resisting and, 

 indeed, of prospering under exposure to long-continued cold. 



